Articles published in April 2014

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Manhattan Prep is a premier test-preparation company serving students and young professionals studying for the GMAT (business school), LSAT (law school), GRE (master’s and PhD programs), and SAT (undergraduate programs). We are the leading provider of GMAT prep in the world.

Manhattan Prep conducts in-person classes and private instruction across the United States, Canada, and England. Our online courses are available worldwide, and our acclaimed Strategy Guides are available at Barnes & Noble and Amazon. In addition, Manhattan Prep serves an impressive roster of corporate clients, including many Fortune 500 companies. For more information, visit www.manhattanprep.com.

We are very excited to announce that the Manhattan LSAT 4th Edition Strategy Guides for Logic Games, Logical Reasoning, and Reading Comprehension, are now available. Sold individually, or as a set, the new edition sets itself apart from others with enhanced curriculum, including new and innovative drills and exercises based on feedback from our students.While the 4th Edition of our books teaches the same overall, tried-and-true Manhattan Prep LSAT strategy, it breaks the process down into more detail and provides more in-depth instruction than ever before.

What are the 3 LSAT Strategy Guides (4th Edition)?

Offering a streamlined and innovative approach to the LSAT, the Set of 3 LSAT Strategy Guides (4th Edition) includes both real LSAT questions from real LSATS and drills designed and written by the world’s best 99th-percentile scoring instructors. Created and field-tested by Manhattan Prep’s expert curriculum team, they are a must-have resource for any student preparing to take the exam.

Three free LSAT INTERACT™ Lessons – Called “the best self study method out right now”, our dynamic digital learning platform will help you kickstart your studies.

Full access to Manhattan LSAT’s proprietary analysis tool, the LSAT Tracker, which allows you to watch your progress and pinpoint your strengths and weaknesses to improve testing performance.

Who should use the LSAT Strategy Guides?

The Strategy Guides are designed to teach you the LSAT from start to finish. They are a perfect way to begin your LSAT preparation if you’ve never laid eyes on an LSAT before. That said, they also make great supplements for those who have already been studying but struggle with certain areas or tasks. For example, if you find that you have a difficult time choosing between “similar answers,” the Similar Answers drill in our Reading Comprehension guide is just what you need.

Years ago, I was at my mind-numbingly dull data entry job and taking my lunch break at my desk with the receptionist when I heard the strangest first date idea, ever.

“We went to Bikram yoga.”

I dropped my bag of pretzels—“lunch” on my salary. I had only just moved to New York but had lived there long enough to learn about Bikram. It was the really sweaty, hot yoga where people wore hardly any clothes, got bright red, and lost control of their bodily functions. I had even been to a class once, at the insistence of a friend. I hadn’t gone back, because I had been so thrilled to leave it alive, and because it cost twenty bucks per.

She went on a first date to Bikram?

“It was his idea. We both wanted to try it so we were like, sure, why not?”

Eventually, she tells me, she married him. She was talking about her husband.

That story came to mind recently and got me thinking. Why not integrate the LSAT into a first date in some creative way? If doing camel pose in 105 degrees can lead people to the altar, what else is possible?

Date Idea #1: Do a logic game together.

I know, I know. But talk about a moment of truth. Forget fake fake chatty chatty, “Oh I LOVE camping” (no, you don’t), “I would never treat a girl like that” (sure you wouldn’t)—you guys go for a full-on logic game showdown on your first date? That’s some authenticity, right there.

Also, how a person acts when he is outperformed can be very revealing.

There are so many reasons this makes a brilliant date that I don’t know where to start. Okay, I’ll settle on: afterward, you’ll be so happy to be out of there, you’ll both seem like the most charismatic people ever, post-event. You’re setting yourselves up to win with hardly any effort during drinks, afterward—all you have to do is be more interesting than four paragraphs about Canadian common law and a room of timid strangers.

Free LSAT event: the ultimate wingman.

Date Idea #3: Arrange to meet up after you take the LSAT.

Talk about lowered inhibitions.

You just finished the LSAT. AIN’T NOBODY BRINGING YOU DOWN!

Or, if on the contrary it didn’t go quite that well, what have you got to lose?

Either way, you are in a good state for a first date because seriously, the stakes are zero. This person may or may not be cool, but you’re just along for the ride, because you just took the LSAT. No matter what happens, you’re not going to sweat it. You have three weeks to kill.Read more

“I knew a guy who just took, like, 40 LSAT in a row over 2 weeks. He hardly slept or ate, he just like, took LSATs, until he got a 180.”

You know what? I’d put money on it: Either that guy started at a 172, or he is an urban legend. (I’ll let you guess which I think is more likely.)

In general, you’ll hear Manhattan Prep teachers say over and over again, quantity does not trump—or match—quality when it comes to LSAT preparation. It is better to take 1-2 tests per week and spend twice as long reviewing them as you did taking them than it is to squeeze in 4 or 5 tests and rush through your review, if you even have time to review at all.

You will learn logic by studying logic methodically, systematically, and dedicatedly. Not by binging on logic problems, hoping that the sheer volume will somehow leak into your brain.

Myth #2: Memorize all the tricks and tactics, and you’ll get a 170+.

The LSAT, I’m sorry to tell you, does not boil down to a set of tips and tactics and “gotcha” solutions. While devices like mnemonics and rules of thumb such as, “The word ‘thus’ indicates a conclusion” are certainly useful, they should not be relied on to carry your score. They should be used as supplements to logical thinking, in other words, not replacements for logical thinking.

Be wary of study methods, people, and books that appeal to your wishful thinking—while tricks and tactics can be helpful, they cannot substitute for rigorous study of the actual concepts being tested, no matter how good they are.

Myth #3: Learn conditional logic, and you’re set.

Conditional logic—the kind of logic that goes, “If X, then Y,” and all its variations—is all over the LSAT. There’s no question about that. And for this reason, learning it is essential. There’s also no question, there.

But a common pitfall is believing that learning conditional logic and applying it across the board is the solution to breaking 170, and that’s just not the case.

Many questions on the LSAT not only don’t require conditional logic, they become more convoluted and even impossible to solve when cast through the lens of conditional logic. (And there is very little if any conditional logic on the Reading Comprehension section.)

The better plan is to learn condition logic backwards and forwards, yes, but then, learn how to recognize where it should be applied and where it should be set aside to wait for you while you use the other tools in your kit.